TheDC Morning: Can Rand Paul win the presidency?

1.) Can Rand Paul win the presidency?— To his credit, Rand Paul isn’t dancing around the bush — he openly admits he’s considering a 2016 run for president. But TheDC’s Matt Lewis opines that he can’t possibly win the presidency:

“Some of it is his fault. His comments to Rachel Maddow about the Civil Rights Act of 1964 will be used against him. This, of course, would only confirm the negative narrative his liberal opponents (and their friends in the media) wish to perpetuate. (Note: I get that Rand Paul hates racism — and that his position is a nuanced one. But that won’t matter in our sound bite media culture.) Some of it’s not his fault. It’s not fair to blame him for the sins of his father, but that won’t stop the media or Paul’s political opponents. It might not be fair for Rep. Ron Paul’s racist newsletters to impact his son’s presidential ambitions — but you know they will.”

Perhaps Paul should enjoy the Senate. He may be there for awhile.

2.) A Boehner blast — Hillary Clinton faced some harsh questions on Benghazi during her testimony on the Hill Wednesday. But House Speaker John Boehner completely rejected any suggestion that the House GOP was responsible for Benghazi because they’re budget hawks. TheDC’s Jeff Poor reports:

“On Wednesday’s broadcast of Laura Ingraham’s radio program, Speaker of the House John Boehner repudiated Hillary Clinton’s efforts during testimony on Wednesday to blame Congress for the Benghazi fiasco. ‘We gave them all the money they asked for to make sure that our diplomats and our employees around the world were safe,’ Boehner said. ‘It’s clear that her own people in Libya asked for additional security, and it’s also clear their request was rejected, and I think the secretary needs to explain why. In all, it’s all part of our bigger concern that this is their ‘lead from behind’ strategy. We’ve only seen passive responses to the rise of extremism and terrorist networks in places like Egypt or Tunisia or Libya and now Algeria. America has to lead in the effort to combat violent extremism and terrorism wherever it appears. And yet this White House seems content to watch passively and respond only if necessary.'”

3.) Higher education reform cometh?— Marco Rubio is widely considered to be a top 2016 GOP presidential contender. But before he does that, he’s going to delve into policy debates. TheDC’s Alexis Levinson reports:

“Sen. Marco Rubio delivered a short speech about education on Wednesday, discussing the need to modernize education for a new century and ensure that students receive the skills necessary to succeed in the changing job market. … ‘For the life of me, I don’t understand why we have stigmatized career education in this country,’ Rubio said. He called for federal financial aid to be extended to non-traditional learning institutions, such as online courses or technical training, and for students to be provided with more information about potential costs and salaries before taking out a student loan.”

4.) Conservative comeback— The GOP was soundly defeated in 2012. But the Republican Party doesn’t have to be losers forever. They can make a comeback. But they need the right candidate, TheDC’s Jamie Weinstein opines:

“What conservatives need is someone who is, well, Rubio-esque. Conservatives need a candidate who is not only instinctively conservative, but one who can passionately and persuasively communicate conservatism — a candidate who can go into any environment and meet with any constituency without seeming awkward or out of place. It’s true that few of the GOP’s potential 2016 candidates fit that bill. It is, after all, a hard bill to fit. It just may be that in 2016 conservatives will come to the conclusion that there is no one more Rubio-esque than Florida Sen. Marco Rubio himself.”

Read the whole column to see what issues the GOP should try to steal as their own.